2023 GLOBAL SRM RESEARCH REPORT
CASE STUDY: TRANSURBAN
62
63
work establishing a programme has provided a good opportunity to improve contact between both sides. Strengthening those connections will also help to render small issues less problematic in future. It should also start to build trust between the buying and supplying sides and aid thinking about how they can best share information about future plans. “They want to understand our pipeline of work and what we’ll be investing in so they can position themselves and resource it appropriately. We need to consider how we can better articulate our strategy and align that with suppliers.” It’s too early to know the impact of the improvements but Sheldrick says because the project necessitated more communication it has already helped to boost existing relationships and build new ones. “There’s been quite a lot of change in procurement in the past couple of years, and this work has provided us with a good vehicle to get out and about. The procurement department has also found itself being engaged earlier and for some different things as well, which is great.” Sheldrick hopes that having a structure in place that sets out guiding principles for supplier relationship management should make Transurban’s operations more efficient, and improve suppliers’ experience of working with them.
STATS AND FACTS Three ways Transurban is helping to improve air quality. Three ways Transurban is helping to reduce emissions 1. By considering design - such as the gradient or steepness of motorways and tunnels - to create smoother journeys, which in turn cuts emissions 2. Building tunnels that divert traffic away from highly populated areas, thereby reducing the need for more fuel-intensive stop/start driving 3. Roadside technologies, such as electronic signs, to manage lane use and speeds to help to manage traffic flow which lowers emissions
Around eight strategic stakeholders then formed a steering committee to help advise and guide procurement’s creation of a supplier framework. This also enabled procurement to further reassure and explain their business proposition to senior stakeholders. Feeding into this steer-co was a larger working group of around 40 people who worked on the details of the framework. Areas included risk, strategy, value creation, sustainability, innovation, resources, pipeline management, and roles and responsibilities. Procurement also held one-to-ones with individuals where needed. Sheldrick says this simultaneous top-down and bottom-up approach, which took around eight months, was useful for keeping key people informed, gathering their expertise and winning individuals over at every level. On the road to change The work was divided into four stages, with more prescriptive detail layered beneath each: 1. Supplier segmentation: Grouping providers into their appropriate segment of ‘strategic, collaborative, tactical or transactional’.
2. Value drivers: This stage asks Transurban to consider what it hopes to achieve through greater engagement with a particular supplier, better management of risk, sustainability, delivering mutual benefit, innovation etc. 3. People: Ascertaining who the key stakeholders are whom they might need in the room and how often. 4. Roles and responsibilities: Specifically defining who does what and what each role comprises for the sake of clarity and to avoid duplication. As well as the recruitment of two procurement professionals who will “live and breathe” supplier relationship management”. The next step was fine-tuning the framework ready for a soft launch with two to three key suppliers.
“We chose strategic, critical, suppliers who were willing and could already see the value of what we were trying to do. After that it will roll out to 15 suppliers in the short term, and then, once value has been achieved and can be proved to internal stakeholders, we’ll probably invest more resources into it and incorporate our top 30 suppliers.” Sheldrick says they are taking a careful, methodical approach, so as not to put too much pressure on the business. “We’re gently incorporating it into the regular operating rhythm and cadence,” he adds. “Our purpose and strategic statement explains that we are very much focused on understanding what matters to our key stakeholders - internally and externally.” He says he knows suppliers want more opportunities to access company executives and the
“Suppliers give us another set of eyes, ears and boots on the ground.”
62
Powered by FlippingBook